New research illustrates how genome adapts to transposon invasion

Small, mobile sequences of DNA left over from viruses, called transposons or "jumping genes" because of their ability to move around the genome, pose a significant threat to the genetic integrity and stability of an organism. ...

A diversity of wildlife is good for our health

A growing body of evidence suggests that biodiversity loss increases our exposure to both new and established zoonotic pathogens. Restoring and protecting nature is essential to preventing future pandemics. So reports a new ...

Infectious disease may have shaped human origins, study says

An international team of researchers, led by scientists at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, suggest that inactivation of two specific genes related to the immune system may have conferred selected ...

How E. coli cells work in the human gut

(Phys.org) -- The bacterium Escherichia coli, commonly known as E. coli, has a duplicitous reputation. Scientists tell us that most strains of the microbe live peacefully in our guts or the guts of other mammals, munching ...

Chemists find new compounds to curb staph infection

(Phys.org) —In an age when microbial pathogens are growing increasingly resistant to the conventional antibiotics used to tamp down infection, a team of Wisconsin scientists has synthesized a potent new class of compounds ...

When parasites catch viruses

When humans have parasites, the organisms live in our bodies, co-opt our resources and cause disease. However, it turns out that parasites themselves can have their own co-habitants.

Quorum sensing: Researchers examine bacteria communication

European researchers at Linköping University in Sweden are showing how bacteria control processes in human cells through a process called quorum sensing. This phenomenon is where bacteria talk to each other via molecules ...

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